The Surge
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Robert Kagan in the Washington Post:
Leading journalists have been reporting for some time that the war was hopeless, a fiasco that could not be salvaged by more troops and a new counterinsurgency strategy. The conventional wisdom in December held that sending more troops was politically impossible after the antiwar tenor of the midterm elections. It was practically impossible because the extra troops didn't exist. Even if the troops did exist, they could not make a difference.Four months later, the once insurmountable political opposition has been surmounted. The nonexistent troops are flowing into Iraq. And though it is still early and horrible acts of violence continue, there is substantial evidence that the new counterinsurgency strategy, backed by the infusion of new forces, is having a significant effect.
Labels: Iraq
posted by JT at Sunday, March 11, 2007
4 Comments:
A grain of salt: The author's brother, Frederick Kagan, was the architect of the "surge."
Actually, Frederick Kagan was just the face put on the name surge, the real architect was none other than Jack Bauer
Friends:
Do you know what the stated political objectives are of the Dawa party? I spoke with a couple important people here in Baghdad the other day who did not know what the Dawa party is. Do you know that the Dawa party is the political party that has been in control since early 2005? (first PM Jaffari, then PM Maliki - same political party)
It's not just a matter of troop strength. As the White House continues to support this Dawa-party-led "government," the future of Iraq is not a bright one. If the White House continues to support this government, and thinks that it will be our strong ally in the war on terror, they are gravely blind.
What has happened here in Iraq is the fruit of an American church and a Jesus-believing Texan in the White House who have lost sight of a biblical world view. Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld thought that if we just set up voting booths five minutes after we "liberated" this country, then people would choose for themselves a government that would provide for their freedom.
That is the fruit of humanistic world view.
The biblical worldview understands that no people - Texans or Arabs - choose (or vote for) freedom for themselves in any way apart from the Grace of God. The biblical worldview anticipates that people, on their own, will screw things up. The biblical worldview understands role of authority and that freedom follows godly authority. The White House had a very good opportunity to establish a godly authority in Iraq with Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi in June of 2004. But they gave him 6 months, at the end of which, the Iraqi people “freely chose” to get rid of him and elect a bunch of “leaders” whose highest loyalties lie with their sect of Islam, not freedom for all Iraqis. And we’ve been watching the disastrous fruit ever since. And we’ve been watching White House officials go on television and 1) deny the obvious and 2) continue to speak as though “democracy” equals “freedom.”
For more than two years now, the Dawa Party has been who they state that they are – loyal to Shia Islam and governance (dominance) by a Shia version of Sharia Law. And the whole two years, Bush has been patting them on the back, saying they are “Iraq’s man for the job.” What is that? Blindness? Pride? Ignorance?
I think about how my reaction would be different if a “secular progressive” democrat had been in the White House since April of 2003 and had made all of the exact same decisions that Bush has made. I would have pride-fully and loudly and arrogantly blamed the bad decisions on the “secular-progressive” worldview. But no – it is an evangelical Christian – voted in by evangelicals – in the White House. I see it as a humbling and sobering wake-up call. Sadly, I’m not sure if my brothers and sisters in the homeland are similarly moved.
Psalm 33:16 (ESV) The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
For a look at Robert Kagan's track record on Iraq, read this. But I'm glad the surge is working.
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